First, I have a big announcement. Starting on our around March 25th and hopefully each Monday thereafter, HIIT’50 will be available as a podcast! The podcast will expand upon my writing and feature regular appearances from experts in the medical and fitness community. A teaser is available on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Scan the QR code below or click the link to subscribe! I am very excited to be able to bring this to you.
This week in the Northeast we’ve had a nice stretch of unseasonably warm weather and I absolutely love it. Looking out my window, I’m starting to see the buds on the trees and the early signs of sprouting plants in the garden. In just a few short days, Spring will officially be upon us.
It’s also the two-year anniversary of this newsletter and looking back, the first post I ever wrote was about planning, scheduling and tracking your workouts. Over the course of the past two years, I’ve changed plenty about how I approach my workouts, but one thing that I have never wavered from is planning and scheduling. So I wanted to revisit some core concepts as the weather tempts us to be more active.
Motivation, Intent, Mindset and Execution (MIME)
I wrote another post in July 2022 that introduced a framework for approaching fitness. Looking back, I think the title of the post sucked (as evidenced by the number of folks who read it), but I do believe the framework was sound. I called it MIME and it stands for motivation, intent, mindset and execution. Let’s review each of those concepts.
Motivation
Motivation is the reason that you want to embark on a regular fitness program. It’s really about the process of defining your reasons for wanting to workout in the first place and for sticking to a regular fitness regimen. Your motivation could be to improve your cardio fitness, better health or to lose weight. Whatever your motivation, I would suggest writing it down and revisiting it from time to time. One of the things I do as I’m planning my day is to remind me of my motivation by including an inspirational quote or a picture that reminds me why it’s so important to stick to a regular routine.
Intent
In this framework, intent is not passive in the sense that you intend to exercise. If for example somebody asks whether I intend to mow the lawn, my answer would be yes, but a likely follow up question is when. That is how I define intent in this framework. It’s the act of specifying when and which fitness activities you plan to do on a given day. I said at the outset that I have never deviated from this approach. I spend my evenings (mornings got way too busy) planning my day and slotting in my exercise where I have time. And to be more specific, if my plan is to exercise for 30 minutes on a given day, but my schedule only allows for 2 windows of 15 minutes, I will break my workouts up so that I am able to complete it. By writing down what you plan to do and when you plan do it, you are creating a way to keep yourself accountable.
Mindset
Again, as with intent, in this framework, mindset is not passive. It’s the act of preparing yourself to exercise. This could mean something as simple as changing into your workout clothes or something a bit more involved like stretching, meditating, or some other form of a pre-workout routine. My personal mindset approach varies according to the work I plan to do. For example, if I’m taking a long run, I prepare by incorporating dynamic stretching and/or percussive massage therapy. If I’m taking a walk, my preparation may just include putting on my sneakers.
Execution
If you’ve set your motivation, intent and mindset, the last thing is the actual completion of the activity. I would add a bit to this by suggesting that you track, either via a fitness device or simple pen and paper, what you actually did. For example, if you set up your schedule to complete 15 minutes of strength training in the morning, you should indicate whether you actually completed it and if not, why you didn’t.
Sleep
If I were to add an “S” to the acronym, it would stand for sleep. I wrote yet another post on the importance of sleep and as we turned the clocks ahead by one hour this past weekend, I was reminded of what it feels like to be sleep deprived. It hits me like jet lag and it took me three nights to get my sleep schedule back on track. Nonetheless, I consider sleep to be crucial to my mental and physical well-being. These are the what I consider to be vital to keeping a regular sleep schedule (knowing full well that most of us by definition are probably somewhat sleep deprived).
Pre-Sleep routine - Prior to when I want to go to bed, I have a bit of a routine that I try to stick to. This includes a bit of reading and planning my schedule for the following day. I find that writing out my schedule and my task list the night puts my mind at ease, rather than sitting up in bed worrying about all the shit that needs to get done.
Stick to a set schedule - I try my best to be in bed between 9 and 10 each night and to wake up at around 5 each morning. My circadian rhythm suggests that I am much more productive in the morning, so going to bed earlier allows me to be as productive as possible in the early morning hours.
Avoid Caffeine, Alcohol or other stimulants before bedtime
A Bit More About the Podcast I’m Planning
The first episode of the show is going to focus on the subjects I’m writing about today. I have two guests booked, including a personal trainer and a medical professional who will hopefully be regulars each week and I’m looking to add a nutritionist (in touch with somebody) and either a life coach or a mental health professional. My hope is to deliver useful, entertaining content each week in 45 minutes or less. I sincerely hope that you will give it a try.
Until then. . .